ESE Pods
So much information about PODS has flooded the market but needs correction.
In this article, we take some steps towards informing consumers of the real facts about ESE PODS
This post is about coffee pods.
We receive many weekly calls from people searching for an improved POD for their coffee equipment.
Most people are calling because they are dissatisfied with the limited range, bland flavour, high cost or alleged poor freshness from the coffee PODS they have previously purchased elsewhere.
They want to buy fresh ESE coffee pods, not stale old ones.
A common misunderstanding is that a POD is a POD, a POD is a capsule or a capsule is a POD, e.g., they are all the same.
Unfortunately, this is not the case and owners of coffee equipment using single-serve capsules, or PODS, need to ensure they are searching and dealing with the correct product that suits their equipment.
The term POD is sometimes confused with capsule, and mostly, in our experience, it is the owners of Nespresso/DeLonghi equipment who are seeking alternatives.
We deal only with ESE (Easy-Serving-Espresso) industry standard PODS.
This product is the de-facto "OPEN" standard used throughout Europe and other continents.
Nespresso and quite a few other manufacturers (such as Philips Senseo, Lavazza Blue, MAP, etc.) of POD or Capsule coffee appliances (equipment) specifically designed their systems with a proprietary lock-in so that owners can only use consumable products (pods or capsules) that are compatible with their machines.
Some 3rd-party companies have attempted to create clone consumables (for example, Nespresso capsules) and were taken to court by large multinational companies threatening massive legal penalties for patent infringement.
Others have tried to develop re-fill type capsules, but ultimately, these could be better managed practically.
The European coffee market has evolved and developed to provide a different type of beverage to what Australians typically consume.
For example, the Italians prefer short-black espresso versus the Australian preference for large mugs of milk-based coffee.
Most ESE POD equipment is designed for short espresso, using the 7g ESE POD.
We often need to improve the dosage when preparing a large mug of coffee with milk using a 7g ESE coffee pod in Australia.
The 7g coffee pod extraction tends to get "lost" in the milk because it is too small unless the 7g pod was created from harsh, bitter, and extremely strong coffee beans such as those used in many types of robusta found in the Italian market.
You can now see the challenge ahead of us.
Customers in Australia sometimes turn their noses up at the coffee produced by overseas equipment designed for making short-black extraction.
The resulting cup tastes different from the latte or cappuccino from their favourite local Australian cafe.
This is particularly true of ESE POD machines.
Add to this the constant barrage from self-appointed coffee experts populating internet forums with information that POD are all made from stale, low-grade coffee, and it will NEVER be as good as their freshly ground extraction from the $3,000 worth of espresso machine and grinder sitting on their kitchen bench.
Now, to correct a few misconceptions.
All ESE PODS are stale.
Our current process involves roasting our PODS monthly and sealing them in bulk bags with degassing valves.
We then use express freight to send the bags to a specialist converter.
After a few days, we received our new, fresh, individually sealed ESE PODS back in our store. We aim to ensure that our customers receive high-quality products that are fresh and of the best quality possible.
Quality coffee needs a good 7-10 days of development.
We ensure that our PODS are converted and returned to our store within the allotted timeframe.
Roasters use low-grade, cheap, robusta-laden beans in their POD blends.
Many of the ESE PODS sold in Australia are imported from Italy.
Unfortunately, this myth could be true regarding the imported ESE PODS.
Australian roasters dislike using Robusta as it may detract from the cup character.
Robusta is a good, evil coffee bean; quality robusta can cost the same as the arabica equivalent.
Too much emphasis on robusta = bad versus arabica = good has taken hold of the Australian coffee industry marketing mindset.
Our ESE PODS do not contain robusta - our personal choice and preference.
Our ESE PODS contain our highest quality and most expensive arabica beans, not because we want to brag about it, but because we realize that the limitations of a 7g dosage mean we have to punch a lot harder with the blend so that coffee flavour works with milk without being "lost".
You can only create a great cup of coffee with a POD.
Again, utter nonsense.
POD machines are much simpler and thus less prone to grind, dose, tamp and extraction errors experienced by 95% of baristas.
The irony is that many people who own coffee machines and grinders in their homes need to learn how to set the hero correctly, dose, tamp and then extract (performing cooling flushes, etc., on low-end equipment to avoid scalding the coffee).
Grinding and dosing can be challenging for many coffee lovers, but with ESE PODs, you can avoid the most common mistakes associated with these tasks.
POD coffee is weak.
We have to concede some ground on this one partially.
It is all relative.
Almost all cafes use 16-gram, 18-gram or larger baskets in their commercial espresso machines.
Comparing that to a 7g ESE POD is unfair.
Australians also tend to want giant coffee-flavoured milkshakes, which, of course, dilutes the flavour.
There are 14g ESE PODS available, but most of the equipment designed to use these larger PODs is commercial, not domestic.
The 10g ESE POD is emerging as a competitive offering - capable of producing a great cup at a reasonable price point.
We are working towards introducing this new standard and encouraging the local machine makers (Breville and Sunbeam) to embrace this standard as a superior method to the Nespresso capsule.
Unfortunately, Breville and Sunbeam have been sitting on their hands for the last three years regarding ESE POD (yes, they released filter baskets but have yet to do much else to market the benefits).
Both have been fascinated with capturing the home espresso machine and grinder market.
They must understand they have a wonderful opportunity to release appliances that can beat Nespresso-type solutions.
ESE PODS are a perfect solution for the workplace where the care and attention of automatic coffee machines are unlikely to be reliable.
ESE PODS require a smaller footprint, have lower overall running costs (when you factor in maintenance, cleaning and service repairs), and are cleaner and simpler.
ESE PODS are perfect for the home - the machines heat up quickly, and there is no wastage trying to dial in the perfect grind and dose setting.
You can have your coffee quickly and then conveniently dispose of the used POD.
*** NOTE ***
As at August 2023, we no longer sell ESE Coffee Pods.